1. The Field of the Invention
The invention relates to electronic commerce. Specifically, the invention relates to a system and method of gathering and processing information and making the information available for organizing, coordinating, and promoting competitive sporting events on a wide area network such as the Internet, interactive networks, and other communication means.
2. Background
Coordinating, organizing, and promoting a competitive sporting event can be a difficult and complicated task. For example, coordinating a boxing match is a complicated endeavor. Before a boxing event can take place, the organizers must consider who the participants will be, what weight classes will be considered, and various skill levels and experience of available fighters. Moreover, trying to coordinate the numerous parties involved in putting on the boxing match (e.g., fighters, trainers, managers, promoters, sponsors, arenas, booking agents, matchmakers, and broadcasters) takes significant effort and time. To assure that the match will go according as planned, each individual entity must stay in contact with the other party. If one of the parties backs out of the agreement, the match may be cancelled.
Present methods of coordinating matches and informing relevant parties of the status of fight plans are inadequate and have several disadvantages. Currently a record book is used for matchmaking. The name of the record is The Boxing Record Book and is published annually by Fight Fax, Inc., however, using The Boxing Record Book to make matches and coordinate fights is very time consuming. The Boxing Record Book is large and unwieldy and does not allow for efficient matchmaking. Because of the difficulty in matchmaking using present resources, boxers may be limited in their matches to those options offered by a promoter. Another disadvantage to the present system is that in order to update The Boxing Record Book, an individual must request updated results for a boxer listed in the book from Fight Fax. Fight Fax will send a facsimile of an updated record to the requester for a fee. This is expensive and inefficient.
Good matchmaking is critical for the success of the fighter. The prior art's inability for boxer's managers and promoters to systematically find opponent options and purse information is a serious shortcoming of today's matchmaking system. Likewise, using prior art systems, boxers who are unable to find a promoter or who are not well known or who live outside an area where boxing matches are commonly held are at a serious disadvantage because the present system does not facilitate their participation. Another problem with the prior art is a lack of information regarding individual boxers available for fans, making it difficult for fans to follow and support a particular boxer.
The boxing industry lacks any form of centralized record keeping that is cost effective and easy to use. There is not a method of fair and easy access to data that is (or could be) kept. Matchmaking using the prior art systems is difficult and time consuming due to a lack of resources for coordinating a match. There is presently no method or system to aid boxers and managers in this decision making process, and due to a lack of information and ability to analyze the market value of a boxer, it is difficult for boxers to obtain the largest possible purse for their match. Fans have difficulty following the sport and purchasing related merchandise because there is a lack of information about fights and boxers.